The Imperceptible Divide between Valour and Violence: Robin Hyde’s Passport to Hell
Abstract
Among the multitude of books on the Australian and New Zealand participation in WW1, Robin Hyde’s Passport to Hell (1936) is considered one of the finest novels. Based on the real story of an ex-borstal boy and war hero, Douglas Stark, Hyde’s work offers an insight into the quintessence of the perfect soldier: a misfit with a past of violence transmuted into valour, a rebel whose contempt for danger and discipline alike becomes a worthy resource. In this particular ‘discourse’ (in Foucault’s terms) violence is a value, manipulated and used as war strategy.
Bibliografia
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